Laughlin



(No Model.)

A. B. MGLAUGHLIN.

DEVICE POR SUPPORTING AND LOWEEING CENTERS EUR TLE ARCHES.

No. 532,005. Patented Jan. 1,1895.

Vl f wf VW l 4 l gi/7- jl A /l UNITED STATES PATENT ALEXANDER B.MCLAUGI-ILIN, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR OF ONF.- TI-IIRD TO WALTERE. SUMMERS, OF SAME PLACE.

DEVICE FOR SUPPORTING AND LOWERING CENTERS FOR TELE-ARCHES.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 532,005, dated January1, 1895.

Application led October 8,1894. Serial No. 525.33@ (N model.)

To aZ whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, ALEXANDER B. Mo- LAUGHLIN, a citizen of the UnitedStates, residing at Chicago, county of Cook, State ot' Illinois,haveinvented a certain new and useful Improvement in a Device for Supportingand Lowering Centers for Tile-Arches; and I declare the following to beafull, clear, and exact description ot the invention, such as will 1oenable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to mal-:e anduse the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, whichform a part of this specication.

My invention is designed to provide improved means for supporting andlowering centers for tile arches and has for its object improved devicesfor this purpose whereby the tiles in an arch may be filled incompletely and for doing away with the necessity zo of keying up thearch after the center has been lowered.

Another object of my invention is to do away with the obstructionsheretofore common in the way of laying the tile, my invention enablingthe workmen to do better and quicker work and to do their work more conveniently.

To these ends my invention consists of the construction, combination,and arrangement 3o of devices and appliances hereinafter described andclaimed, and illustrated in the accompanying drawings in connectiontherewith, in which- Figure l is a partial vertical section, show- 3 5ing parts in elevatiomof portions of a building. Fig. 2 is a det-ailsectional view illustrating the old method and means of laying tilearches, heretofore used. Fig. 3 is a detail view of a portion of an archat right angies to the section shown in Fig. l. Fig. eis

a plan view of Fig. l. Fig. 5 denotes a suitable lever employed indetaching certain portions of the device as hereinafter explained.

In Figs. l and e I have illustrated my device in connection with twoadjacent stories or iloors of a building.

A denotes the customary horizontal steel I-beams commonly employed inbuildings where tile iioors or arches are employed. 5o A denotes thevertical beams.

B denotes individual iiles of which the arch is constructed.

C denotes what is termed a center upon which the tiles are supportedwhile the arch is being laid and keyed up. These centers are constructedin the ordinary manner, and consist usually of wooden ledgers D, shownin dotted lines, Fig. 4, with their ends projecting. rlhese ledgers arecommonly formed of two pieces of timber d, d', spaced apart, form- 6oing a passage way, shown at (Z2 therebetween. Upon these ledgers planksD' are laid for supporting the tile while being laid thereupon.

To more fully understand my improved devices for supporting tile centersWhile the arch is being laid, and for lowering the centers after thearch has been completed, I have shown in Fig. 2 the old devices andmethod heretofore commonly employed, consisting 7o of a ledger F. laidat right angles to the ledger D and adjacent to the arch to be laid.

In Fig. 2 the center C is shown supported adjacent to the base of theI-beams A, while the ledger E is supported upon the top of the sameI-beams, customarily with a block of brick or other suitable materialshown in Fig.

2 at F. To work the tiles adjacent to the ledger E, it is necessary toelevate them a suitable distance above the adjacent I-beams 8o A,requiring one or more bricks or blocks F upon said I-beams underneaththe ledger E.

The centers C have heretofore commonly been supported by means of rods Gprovided at their lower ends with hooked or flanged plates G engagedunderneath the ledger D, the bolt G passing upward through the channeld2 between adjacent planks and through the ledger E, a nut Gr2 servingto tighten the rod Gin place, a washer g usually intervening 9o betweentheledgerE and the nutG2. It will be observed that the ledger E islocated adjacent to the arch to be laid and near its upper surface. Theledgers E so located adjacent to the arch are very much in the way ofthe workmen in seriously impeding their 'work and rendering it laboriousand slow to place the tile in position adjacent thereto. The ledgers Ebeing located adjacent to the arch to be laid have thus been heretoforea conroo stant obstruction in the way of the workmen.

, To lower this center, as heretofore commonly ysupported and arranged,it has been customnecessaryfto leave out a key from the arch adjacentyto the bolts G, commonly four in number, to support an individual tilecenter. After the center has been lowered away, the workmen must thenreturn tothe arch to insert the omitted key tiles from the arch. The

omission of the'keys until thecenters werey lowered away, necessarilyleft the adjacent tile in a position liable toy displacement, as Vtheywere liable to be easily slipped out of position and to fall throughifstepped upon, in

f which ycase it became necessary toraise a tile center underneath toput the displaced tiley 73o back intoposition. This liability ofVportions 'of the tile adjacent to the omittedfkey being slipped out ofplace and the consequent necessity of their replacement, together withthe obstructionsin the way of the workmen, heretofore common, haverendered it very desirable that these differences should be overcome,and I will now proceed to describe how my improved appliances veryeffectually overcomethese differences and hinderances whereby the formerobstructions may be done away with in laying the tile and whereby thekeying up of the arch after the center has been lowered away, is nolonger required.

I carry out my invention as follows: The center C is constructed in theusual manner. Instead, however, of locating the supporting ledgersadjacent to the top of the I-beams between which the tile are to belaid, I carry supporting ledgers, which I have indicated at D2, to theioor or story above that on which the arch is to be laid, as indicatedin Figs. l and 4. Instead of rods G heretofore commonly used, engagedwith the ledgers D, I employ a rod H provided with a hanged plate orbase H engaging the lower edges of the ledger D, the rod H being, say,an inch and a quarter in diameter, or of suitable dimensions, a nut h onits lower end holding the plate H in position. The rod H, toward itsupper end and above the completed arch, is cut away, as shown at h', toform a shoulder thereabove, as shown at h2. To form this shoulder, therod H may simply be recessed annularly a slight distance. Above theshoulder h2 the rod H is threaded, as shown at h3. Upon the upper end ofthe rod H, I engage any suitable connecting device having a screwthreaded connection therewith. Thefrod H at the left hand in Fig. lr isshown engaged at its upper end by a head-piece .I having an eye, as atj, at its upper end. K denotes an additional rod threadedy at its upperend and engaged with the ledger D2 located at the story above Y the archto be laid,the rod Kbcing provided at its upper end with a nut la. Achain L is shown at the left hand in Fig.fl connecting therod K with thehead-piece J, the lower end of Vthe kchain beingformed with a hookengaged in the eye j. At the right hand in Fig. l, insteadof connectingthe rods H and K by meansof a chain' L and a head-piece J,

I 'have shown a turn-buckle M engaged at its. extremities with theadjacent extremities of ythe rods H and K.

' f N denotes a lever of' suitable construction to engage the shoulderedportion ofthe bars H. As shown, the'lever N is constructed with a fork nat one end to,` engage the rod H at the recessed portion h thereof, thefork n engaging under they shoulderh-"In klaying ythe arch, the tiles Bare laid directly up against the rod H, the keys all being laid inplace, it

beingy unnecessary to omit any tiley or keys in f order to lower awaythe center. When the arch has been kwholly completed and the workmen areready tolower away the center, the

implements N are engaged with the shoulders v h2 of the yrods H by meansof which the centers ymay be supported while the'devices con- Y nectingthe yba-rs H and K areseparated from the barsH ordetachedV therefrom. fY

When a'chaimas shown at the left hand in Fig. l at L, is employed as aconnecting device, its lower end may be unhooked from the eye of thehead-piece J, the bar H being supported in position by means of theimplement N. With the head-piece J is engaged a rope or cable P by meansof which the workmen may lower the center. It will be observed that thehead-piece J is of the same diameter as that of the body of bar H so asto pass through the orifice in the arch occupied by the bar. It will beunderstood that ordinarily four bars H are employed to support a center,as shown in Fig. 4, although they maybe of any required number. In thiscase, the four bars H are supported by means ot the levers N ashereinbefore described, while the bars K are detached therefrom, afterwhich by means of the ropes or cables P attached to the head-pieces Jthe centers are lowered away.

In case turn-buckles or analogous devices are employed to connect thebars H and K, when the bar H has been disconnected therefrom, a ropewith a head-piece .I attached thereto is secured upon the upper end ofthe rod H whereby the center may be lowered away as above described. Itwill thus be perceived that the arch is fully completed, no keys ortiles being omitted before the center is lowered away. Theoriticeoccupied by the bar H may be filled in by the plasterer. There is thusno liability whatsoever of the displace- IOO IIO

ment of any of the keys or tiles of the arch after the center has beenlowered away. At the same time the supporting cross pieces or ledgers D2being located on the I-beams at the story or floor above that on whichthe arch is to be laid carries said supporting led gers or cross piecesup above and entirely out of the way of the Workmen so that they areunimpeded and unobstructed thereby in their work, in consequence ofwhich they are enabled to work much more rapidly and more efficiently,thereby enabling them to do a better job and in much less time than hasheretofore been possible. There is in this way no keying up of said archto be done after the center is lowered away therefrom.

Instead of employing a nut h on the lower end of the rod H, said rod maybe rivet-headed.

lVhere a turn-buckle M is employed, it will be convenient to coil therope once or twice therethrough to facilitate the lowering of thecenter, as the center is usually too heavy to be lowered by a straighthold upon the rope. In place of making the shoulder h2 integral with therod H, a nut might be run down upon the rod to answer the same purpose.

It will be understood, as hereinbefore explained, that in the old methodit has been necessary to leave out certain portions of the tile in orderto provide room for lowering the old fashioned hook through the arch andbetween the members d, d of the ledger D. Moreover, when such a spacehas been left by the omission of a tile the space is liable to come overone of the separating blocks, shown at Q, Fig. 4, in which case it hasbeen necessary to take out more of the tile to give opportunity to lowerdown the old fashioned hook between the members d and d to engage theledger D.

W'hat I claim as my invention isl. In a device for supportingr andlowering centers for laying tile arches, the combination of the ledgersD, the ledgers D2, rods H engaged with the ledgers D, the rods K engagedwith the ledgers D? and having removable connections with the rods Hrespectively, substantially as set forth.

2. In a device for supporting and lowering centers for laying tilearches, the combination of the ledgers D, the ledgers D2, rods H engagedwith the ledgers D, the rods K engaged with the ledgers D`2 and havingremovable connections with the rods H respectively and means to supportthe rods H in disconnecting the rods K therefrom, substantially as setforth.

3. In a device for supporting and lowering centers for laying tilearches, the combination of ledgers D to support the arch, theA rods Hengaged therewith at their lower ends' and extending through thecompleted arch, and means to engage the upper ends of said rods to lowerthe center, said rods each constructed with a shoulder h2 and cut awaytherebeneath, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

4. In a device for supporting and lowering centers for laying tilearches, the combination of the ledgers D, the ledgers D2, the rods Heach constructed with a shoulder toward its upper end and engaged withthe corresponding ledger D at its lower end, the rod K engaged with theledgers D2 and having removable connections with the rods Hrespectively, and means to engage said shoulder on the rods H to supportsaid rods in disconnecting the rods K therefrom, substantially as setforth.

5. In a device for supporting and lowering centers for laying tilearches, the combination of the ledgers D, ledgers D2, the rods H engagedwith the ledgers D, the rods K engaged with the ledgers D2 and eachhaving a removable connection with the corresponding rod H, and a leverengageable with each of the rods H to support the same in disconnectingthe rods K therefrom, substantially as set forth.

6. In a device for supporting and lowering centers for laying tilearches, the combination of the ledgers D, the rods H engaged therewith,the ledgers D2, the rods K engaged therewith, a connection between therods K and H having a removable engagement with the rod H, a head-pieceengageable with the rod H, a rope or cable engaged with said headpiece,and means to support the rod H in disengaging said connection therefrom,substantially as set forth.

7. In a device for supporting and lowering centers for laying tilearches, the combination of the ledgers D located below the I- beams ofthe door upon which the tile arch is tobelaidandsupportingacenterthereupon,rods H engaged with said ledgers,ledgers Dzlocated upon the I-beams of the door above that on which thearch is to be laid, rods K engaged with the ledgers D2 and removablyconnected at their opposite ends with the rods H, and means to supportthe rods H in disconnecting the rods K therefrom, and for lowering therods H with the center supported thereby, substantially as set forth.

8. In a device for supporting and lowering centers for laying tilearches, the combination of the ledgers D, the rods H engaging saidledgers and extending through the completed arch, a perforatedhead-pieceJ of a diameter not greater than the diameter of the rod,engaged with the upper end of said rod, and a rope or cable connectedwith said headpiece, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

In testimony whereof I sign this specilcation in the presence of twowitnesses.

ALEXANDER B. MGLAUGHLIN.

Vitnesses:

N. S. Wnrenr, O. B. BAENZIGER.

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